A Perfect Match II — Book Signing
by Savannah Singleton
Summary: Some fun for Frank and Nicole after all the drama of the last two stories in the series. Hope you enjoy.


The black SUV pulled up in front of Barney & Bates Bookstore in Greenwich Village of Lower Manhattan just before seven Tuesday evening. The front passenger door swung open, and a man in a beige suit stepped out of the vehicle, assessed the area, then opened the back door of the SUV. Police Commissioner Frank Reagan stepped out, and immediately lifted the collar of his long, heavy black coat as the crisp cold air of December hit the back of his neck. The light snow had begun falling early in the afternoon, and was forecast to continue through the night. The Commissioner prayed it got no heavier; the city had enough to deal with in the way of holiday visitors and shoppers; it — and he and his police force — didn't need the added headache of delayed and even stalled traffic on the busy streets caused by heavy snowstorms.

Frank stood in front of the shop's squared bay window for several minutes before stepping inside. Soft Christmas music could be heard in the distance. The green painted wood trim of the multi-paned window was weathered, giving it an old, antique look. Inside, the perimeter of the window was lit by a string of red and green lights. A wreath hung in the center of the window. Many of the books on display in the large window had the same old worn look of the store's exterior, while others were new, recent releases, including the one in the center, titled _The Lighthouse_. Through the paneled glass of the window, Frank could see the author of this new best-seller sitting at a small table, her agent sitting in a chair beside her. He'd had mixed feelings about her keeping her full schedule of book signings all this week, starting with this one. It had only been a week since she had suffered the horrible experience of the kidnapping that had led to the shooting deaths of two young men, one dropping dead at her bare feet. Frank was used to such things, if one really ever got used to it, just as Danny, one of the shooters, was. But Frank's wife of only a couple of months wasn't, and though Nicole insisted she was fine, he wasn't completely convinced she was. He certainly wasn't ready for her to be making so many public appearances so soon afterward knowing the possibility of copycat offenders, some unstable someone wanting his, or even her, fifteen minutes of fame. At least at small, independently owned bookstores like this one, she could be easily guarded by her detail. It was the larger chains like Barnes and Noble that troubled him the most.

He had been in this bookstore with her a few times in the past. It was her favorite, and she had become good friends with the two owners years ago. She had said she liked the quaint, cozy feel of it, the soft lighting, the smell of dust, of old. He appreciated its nice collection of old history books.

He hadn't mentioned his plan to stop by the bookstore when he'd talk to her on the phone just before she'd arrived at the shop at five. He hoped she would be pleased to see him, thought he might take her to dinner later, when the book signing ended at eight.

His two-member detail now stood behind him, the SUV parked in front of the shop. When he was ready to enter the bookstore, one of the men reached to open the door for him.

"No need to hang around, gentlemen," Frank said as he eyed the beige SUV parked in front of them.

"Are you sure, sir?"

"I'm sure, Jerry. See you and Marty in the morning. Have a good evening."

"You, too, sir."

When Frank entered the store, he was immediately greeted by a member of Nicole's detail.

"Good evening, sir."

"Good evening, Thomas. How's it going?"

"Very well, sir."

"Good. Glad to hear it. Has she been busy?"

"Very."

Frank could see that Nicole was busy signing one of her novels for the young woman standing on the other side of the table from her. Three others were in line behind her. He stood and watched her for a few moments, noticing how pretty she looked in the soft pink cashmere sweater and creme wool slacks. The high cowl neck of the sweater hid the knife cut on her neck she had received before Danny had taken out the second kidnapper. Not wanting to disturb her, Frank made his way over to the checkout counter to say hello to the two owners. After a short chat with the two gentlemen, he helped himself to several of the store's ample inventory of the hardback edition of _The Lighthouse_ , then took his place at the end of the short line.

As he waited his turn, he found himself amused by the conversation taking place between an older couple who joined the line behind him.

"What did you say her name is, Thelma?" the gentleman asked the woman Frank assumed was his wife.

"Cassandra Carrington, Fred. See, it says right here on the cover."

"Isn't this man in front of us that police commissioner who's always on the news?" Fred asked in a lower voice.

"Yes, Fred. Hush," she whispered back, but could still be heard.

Frank turned around to face them. "How are you this evening?"

"We're good, sir, thank you," Fred replied, looking up at the large man standing in front of him.

"Glad to hear it."

Noticing the large stack of hardbacks Frank held, Fred said, "You must be quite a fan of Miss Carrington."

"I am," Frank replied, his smile wide, before turning back around and moving up in the line.

"He doesn't seem like the type who would read romance," Fred whispered to his wife.

"Well, of course he reads hers, Fred!" Thelma whispered back.

"What's so special about hers?"

"She's his wife, you idiot!" Thelma replied a bit too loudly.

Frank turned, smiled again at the couple. When he heard Nicole say his name, he turned back, realized he was first in line.

"Good evening, Commissioner Reagan. I didn't expect to see you here this evening. This is a nice surprise," Nicole said, smiling.

"Good evening to you, Miss Carrington. Ms. Lane. Ben," Frank said, acknowledging her agent Kerri Lane and the second member of her detail, Ben, who stood behind her. "Just doing some Christmas shopping for the special ladies in my life. Could you please sign these?"

Nicole quickly counted the number of her novels he was holding.

"You have ten special ladies in your life, do you?"

"I do. There's Erin, Linda, Nicky—"

"I thought Nicky was too young for such reading."

Frank shrugged. "Well, she's in college now, I figure she can handle it."

"I think she can, too. Especially this one. And, knowing what else she's read."

Frank frowned. "Don't remind me."

"So, that's three. I believe you have seven more."

"Let's see," Frank said, rubbing his chin after placing the books on the table. "One, for me, of course, then there's Detective Baker, and I promised the Mayor one for his wife. Then there's the wife of the new mayor-to-be. Can't forget Garrett, either."

"Sybil already has her signed copy. She and Anthony were here earlier. So, that's seven, counting you and Garrett, though I wasn't aware Garrett was a fan. I'm pretty sure I know how you can get these for free, by the way. At least seven of them, anyway," Nicole teased.

Frank smiled. "No, no. I'm a paying customer, just like these other people in line behind me. A line that I'm holding up. Perhaps I could leave these here for you to sign later, and get out of the way."

"I think that's a good idea," Nicole said, moving the stack of books over to the back corner of the small table. Don't go too far, though, Commissioner."

"I'll just be in the back, in the history section."

Frank leaned over the table and gave Nicole a quick kiss before stepping out of the line.

"So, how many books do I have to buy to get to kiss her?" the gentleman next in line with his wife asked.

"More than one, Fred. A whole lot more than one," Frank replied with a smile before heading to the back of the store.

"He's one big fella," Fred said to Nicole.

Nicole smiled as she reached for the book his wife held. "Yes, he is."

Several minutes later Nicole joined Frank in the history section. He was alone in that part of the bookstore; he had a thick book open in his hands, seemed to be engrossed in it.

"A little light reading, Frank?"

He glanced up, unaware of her presence. Closing the large book, he replied, "Just killing time."

"You don't have to hang around, you know."

"I know. I don't mind. Thought we might go for dinner when you're done."

"That sounds nice," she said, wrapping her arms around his waist under his heavy coat.

He bent his head down to kiss her, then, after placing the book on the shelf, wrapped his hands on the back of her neck, pulled her closer to him, kissed her again, this one lasting much longer than the first.

"Making out in the back of a bookstore? Honestly?"

"Aww...I think it's sweet, Mom."

"You would, Nicky. It's totally inappropriate."

Frank and Nicole broke apart at the first sound of the two female voices.

"Erin. Nicky. Didn't expect to see you two here," Frank said.

"Obviously not!" Erin replied. "Seriously, Dad?"

"As I recall, someone got caught in the campus library doing exactly the same thing more than once," Frank replied with a mischievous grin.

"Mom! You did?" Nicky exclaimed, pleased to hear such stories about her 'perfect' mom.

"Thanks for sharing that, Dad," Erin complained. "That was college, a long time ago. By the way, Nicole, you're wanted up front. Your agent is leaving, and a few people are waiting in line for you."

"I guess I better get back up there, then. Thanks. Good to see you both."

After Nicole disappeared, Erin turned to her dad.

"How's she doing?"

"Seems to be doing fine. Handling it all better than I am, it appears."

"Is that why you're here? To make sure she's safe?"

"She doesn't need me to keep her safe. She has her detail. And they learned their lesson about staying with her the hard way. I just preferred to be here rather than at home. That's all. So, what are you and my favorite granddaughter doing here?"

"We just thought we'd come by, say hi. And get a signed copy of her new book, of course."

"Well, that's taken care of already, but glad to see you here supporting her. It means a lot to both of us."

Suddenly, a loud boom echoed through the store.

"What the hell? Stay back here, both of you," Frank instructed Erin and Nicky before making his way to the front of the store, reflexively feeling under his suit jacket for his revolver. He could hear Nicole's voice.

"What are you doing? Stop!"

She seemed to be struggling with someone. It took Frank a second to realize she was struggling with Ben.

Finally free of him, Nicole raised both hands in the air.

"It's okay, Ben! Everyone! The books just got knocked off the table."

Frank looked, saw the stack of books he had left on the table now scattered on the hardwood floor. He let out a huge sigh of relief, then joined Thomas at the table, helped him pick the books up and set them back on the table.

"You okay?" he asked Nicole.

"I'm fine."

"Sorry, Nicole. Commissioner. I stepped away for a few seconds. Heard the bang, instinctually tried to get Nicole to safety. Guess I overreacted," Ben said, clearly embarrassed by his action.

"It's okay, Ben. You're not the only one who did. Guess we're all a little on edge right now," Frank said.

"Hope I didn't hurt you," Ben said to Nicole.

"You didn't, Ben. Thanks for trying to protect me, even though I was not being cooperative."

"Dad, is everything all right?" Erin asked as she and Nicky cautiously made their way to the front of the store.

"Oh, Erin!" Frank replied, suddenly remembering that he had left her and his granddaughter in the back of the store. "Everything is fine."

"Good. I think we're going to go home."

"Good idea." Frank gave both of them a kiss on the cheek, asked Thomas to escort them to their car.

"That's not necessary, Dad," Erin protested.

"I know. But I'd feel better."

"Okay, Dad. Thanks. Talk to you both tomorrow. Goodnight, Nicole."

"Goodnight," Nicole replied. "Thanks for coming."

Nicole quickly signed books for the last two customers in line, then noticing the time, said, "It's eight."

She packed up her supplies while Frank paid for his ten copies of her book, knowing she would have plenty of time to sign them at home later. After Nicole thanked the owners, she retrieved her coat. As Frank helped her into it, she said, "About dinner. Henry had a large pot of stew cooking when I left this afternoon. It had the whole kitchen smelling wonderfully. I'm tired. If you don't mind, Frank, a glass of wine and a bowl of that stew sounds inviting to me."

"Sounds good to me, too. Let's go home. By the way, I sent my detail home earlier. Any chance I can bum a ride with yours?"

"I think that can be arranged, Commissioner."

"Good." Pulling the front of her coat together, Frank said, "Bundle up, Mrs. Reagan. It's cold out."


End file.
